Drivers of motor vehicles are provided with a variety of switches and levers with which to control various features of the vehicle. For example, frequently used functions governed by switches and levers may include transmission gear shifting and auxiliary gearset control, cruise control operation, and engine braking, among others. For purposes of shifting the transmission gears, a gear shift control lever is typically connected to the transmission and used to control the gearbox to manually shift transmission gears among various gear ratios. A control lever may also be used in automatic or automated mechanical transmissions to select a particular gear or to indicate the desire to change gears.
Engine braking switches have traditionally been located on the floor or dashboard for use in controlling the braking of a vehicle's engine. Cruise control switches are typically located on the dashboard, the steering wheel, or the turn signal lever to operate various cruise control functions. Auxiliary gearset switches, such as those used to control the splitter and/or range of a multispeed compound transmission, have been located on the dashboard or steering wheel to provide convenient access to the vehicle operator.
Because the above described vehicle functions are repeatedly manipulated by the driver of the vehicle, they should normally be ergonomically and conveniently located so that the driver is able to actuate them with little effort and without diverting attention from the road.
A number of prior art systems have attempted to place various controls within convenient reach of the driver. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,315,900 issued to Teeter and assigned to the assignee of the present invention discloses a transmission control lever having cruise and engine brake control switches. U.S. Design Pat. No. D366,439 issued to Allen, Jr. et al. discloses a design for a gear shift lever having cruise control, wherein three cruise control switches are shown on the top of the lever. This design assumes that drivers hold the gear shift lever by wrapping their hand around the side of the lever. However, the prior art does not provide an ergonomic gear shift lever which is capable of being gripped both from the top and from the side, which provides for integrated operation of various engine and/or vehicle functions.
Consequently, a need has developed for a transmission control lever which allows for ergonomically and conveniently positioned switches positioned thereon for activating and operating the vehicle cruise control features, multispeed auxiliary gearset, and engine braking features which accommodates drivers who use top hand positioning as well as wraparound positioning.